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Just Feel BetterWed, 13 Dec 2017 16:53:45 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.8.3Cholesterol – The Natural Wayhttp://www.wyndhamhealth.com/chit-chat/cholesterol-the-natural-way.html/
http://www.wyndhamhealth.com/chit-chat/cholesterol-the-natural-way.html/#respondMon, 05 Sep 2016 16:42:41 +0000http://www.wyndhamhealth.com/?p=9577Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance that’s found in all the cells of our body. It has a hormone-like structure that behaves like a fat in that it is insoluble in water and in blood. 80% of cholesterol in your body is produced in the liver in response to inflammation as a result of excess […]

]]>Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance that’s found in all the cells of our body. It has a hormone-like structure that behaves like a fat in that it is insoluble in water and in blood.

80% of cholesterol in your body is produced in the liver in response to inflammation as a result of excess acidic waste products that build up on the exterior walls of the blood vessels. The liver makes 2 grams of cholesterol a day, more than 5 times the amount you could eat in a single day. The effect of your dietary cholesterol therefore is actually quite negligible.

There are two types of cholesterol, High-density lipoproteins (HDL) and Low-density lipoproteins (LDL). HDL is supposed to be the ‘good’ cholesterol and LDL the ‘bad’, but in fact this is not the case. All cholesterol is the same, it is just the transportation system that is different. Cholesterol travels through your bloodstream in small packages called “lipoproteins” which are made of lipids (fats) on the inside and proteins on the outside.

Cholesterol is simply a necessary ingredient that is required to be regularly delivered around the body for the efficient healthy development, maintenance, and functioning of our cells. Problems can occur, however, when the LDL particles are both tiny, and their carrying capacity outweighs the transportation potential of available HDL. This can result in more cholesterol being transported around the body with diminished resources for returning excess capacity to the liver.

Until the mid 80’s, the only treatment for ‘high cholesterol’ was niacin and vitamin B3, but with the proliferation of statin drugs in the late 80’s and into the 90’s, average cholesterol levels began to lower, so in part to justify the continued dependence on these patented drugs, the standard for cholesterol levels began to drop, first to 5.2 and then to 4.9 and now even lower.

Statins are one of the best ways for lowering cholesterol, if that is what you want to do, but they come with a list of side effects and studies show they deplete levels of Co-enzyme Q10 a vital nutrient without which the heart muscle would fail to work properly and you could end up with a heart attack!

A recent study published in the March 2015 journal Expert Review of Clinical Pharmacology indicated that statin drugs inhibit the biosynthesis of selenium containing proteins, one of which is glutathione peroxidase, a vital antioxidant, which serves to suppress peroxidative stress. A selenium deficiency can be a cause of congestive heart failure.

Realistically the average cholesterol level of around 5.2 is perfectly normal. 4.9 to 5.6 is the ideal range for most people, and as you get older your cholesterol level rises. If your cholesterol levels run too low, there is an increased risk of cardiovascular incidents, stroke, brain haemorrhage, Alzheimer’s and even cancer.

According to a study published in The American Heart Journal, half of all heart attack patients admitted to hospital had no previous symptoms and had normal cholesterol levels. Their first sign was a heart attack! If you think about it if everyone with high cholesterol levels had a heart attack the number of heart attacks would triple.

Also, did you know that your body actually needs cholesterol for a number of important bodily functions? It is actually a nutrient rather than a poison. It is both fuel for the brain and one of the primary building blocks for healthy hormone production of testosterone and oestrogen. It helps keep the cells of your body strong, it helps transport vitamins throughout your body and in nine separate studies there is confirmation that cholesterol is a necessary component in bodily homeostasis for cancer prevention.

A recent 2015 review published in the journal QJM: An International Journal of Medicine further challenges the prevailing myth that cholesterol is bad. The study showed that not only does cholesterol help protect against cancer, but not having enough can drastically increase one’s cancer risk.

So, if cholesterol is not the villain it has been made out to be what else can contribute to heart attacks?

There are 3 other factors that can have a bearing on your cardiovascular health and if you can help to control them you can boost your heart and prevent heart attacks and strokes.
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a) High C-reactive Protein levels found in blood plasma in response to increased inflammation.

b) High Triglycerides that are the result of eating a meal high in calories or taking in lots of sugar. It is all converted into blood fats (triglycerides) by the body that can wreak havoc on your cardiovascular system and cause inflammation.

c) High homocysteine levels. This is an amino acid that is found in the blood and acquired mainly from the breakdown of other amino acids and eating meat. High levels of homocysteine in the blood can damage the arterial walls and lead to artherosclerosis and blood clots – more inflammation.

One of the researchers in the latest study on cholesterol said that altering your lifestyle is the single most important way to achieve a good quality of life.

According to recent research at Harvard, the primary causes of atherosclerosis are lesions and plaque in the arteries caused by sugar which causes insulin to be released. Insulin causes lesions in the endothelium of the arteries that become clogged with cholesterol. So, cholesterol gets the blame, but the real culprit is sugar and inflammation.

So reducing inflammation is the best way of preventing cardiovascular problems and here are some non-drug ways to help boost your heart health:-
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Cut out all processed grains and sugars from your diet. They are inflammatory foods!

Eat lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, organic if possible and raw for a portion of them. Green vegetables make you alkaline and inflammation cannot exist in an alkaline medium, so lots of green vegetables.

Make sure you are getting plenty of high-quality, animal-based omega-3 fatty acids, such as Eskimo 3. Research suggests that as little as 500 mg of omega-3 per day can help improve your total cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

Replace harmful vegetable oils and synthetic trans fats with healthy saturated fats, like olive oil, butter, avocado, eggs and coconut oil. Only use olive oil cold, because it becomes rancid at too high a temperature, and use coconut oil for cooking and baking.

Get out in the sun to optimise your vitamin D levels. Obviously you do not want to burn your skin but 15 minutes a day in the sun brings in your daily requirement of vitamin D. It plays a crucial role in preventing the formation of arterial plaque. In the winter a good supplement of vitamin D3 is essential.

Exercise regularly to improve your heart function and fitness levels. The best form of exercise is high intensity interval exercises.

Clean your teeth regularly every day with a natural toothpaste, and make sure you have good probiotic to introduce good bacteria into the mouth and also to improve the immune system in the gut. Poor oral health plays a major role in heart disease.

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Fri, 13 Aug 2010 12:44:10 +0000http://www.wyndhamhealth.com/?p=2468Heart disease is the number one killer in this country. 1 in 3 women and 1 in 2 men die from heart disease. So, contrary to popular belief, women die of heart attack almost as much as men – and more often than they die of breast cancer. Cardiovascular disease affects 2/3rds of the affluent […]

]]>Heart disease is the number one killer in this country. 1 in 3 women and 1 in 2 men die from heart disease. So, contrary to popular belief, women die of heart attack almost as much as men – and more often than they die of breast cancer.

Cardiovascular disease affects 2/3rds of the affluent world and kills 45% of them. The first sign of a heart attack is a heart attack!

So don’t let that happen to you, get yourself checked out and do something to stop yourself becoming another statistic. You can change things.

So what is a healthy heart?

One that pumps your blood and nutrients around your body at an ideal pressure of 120/80. 120 is the systolic pressure, when the heart beats, 80 is the diastolic pressure, when the heart relaxes. The slower our heart rate the longer we live.

To do this it requires healthy arteries, healthy muscles, healthy valves and healthy lungs to provide the oxygen.

What can go wrong?

20% of adults have high blood pressure. In 90-95% of those people there is no obvious known cause. In 5-10% there is kidney disease or an endocrine disorder.

How do you do this?

1. A good diet plays a major part in keeping your heart healthy. It is important to:

• Eat lots of fresh raw fruit and vegetables especially green ones to keep your body as alkaline as possible.
• Increase your intake of oats and grains as they bind to Cholesterol.
• Eat plenty of unsalted nuts especially almonds, as they give you potassium.
• Avoid low fibre fatty foods, saturated fats and oils. Saturated fat should account for not more than 10% of total fat intake.
• Use, in moderation, unsaturated fats and oils from plants such as olive, sunflower, safflower, sesame and rapeseed oil and oily fish such as mackerel, sardines, salmon, tuna, anchovies and kippers.
• Cut out all processed salt, it is hidden in all sorts of food including ice-creams. Sea salt is the best salt to use when cooking.
• Limit your intake of bakery products high in fat and sugar.
• Restrict all your sugar consumption as it increases your blood sugar which in turn increases your insulin levels. High insulin levels encourage fat to be stored in the body leading to obesity.
• Restrict your intake of oxycholesterols as in foods fried in heated oils, dried milk powder and dried egg yolks.
• Do not eat too much animal protein. Too much of the amino-acid Methionine derived from the normal breakdown of proteins can lead to an increase of Homocysteine, causing damage and hardening of the arteries.
• Reduce your coffee and alcohol consumption as 1 cup of coffee raises your blood pressure by 5-6 points and 1-2 ounces of alcohol can create significant hypertension.

2. It is thought that periodontal (gum) pathogens could enter the blood stream, invade the blood vessel walls and ultimately cause atherosclerosis. To this end it has been shown that periodontal disease is involved in narrowing of the carotid arteries with increased risk of stroke. It is so important to keep your gums healthy at all times with plenty of brushing and nutrition

3. Keep your weight down as you can shorten your life by 1 month for very pound of excess fat you have. If you lose just 5 lbs it will reduce your blood pressure. Being overweight is a major risk as you are more likely to become diabetic which then leads to coronary heart disease.

4. Exercise regularly as this will prevent obesity and it helps to diffuse stress and gets rid of the adrenalin surge. It also increases your oxygen intake which is vital for normal body functioning.

5. Reduce your stress levels as much as possible. Stress is the normal response of the body in an abnormal situation. The body responds with the fight or flight mechanism and the adrenalin levels go up. The muscles become tight and this increases your blood pressure. At this time you are six times more likely to have a heart attack. It is very important that you have a positive outlook in life. For help with this come and see one of our counsellors.

6. Stop Smoking because after every cigarette your blood pressure goes up and stays up for 30 minutes. If you are having difficulty giving up, try hypnotherapy or acupuncture.

7. What is cholesterol? It is a waxy fat-like chemical which is an essential
component of certain hormones, body structures and digestive acids. The amount of cholesterol required to perform these bodily functions is manufactured internally by the liver and a certain amount of cholesterol is vital to the body. We are all encouraged to reduce our cholesterol levels but in fact it would be better if we went further back and asked why we have a high cholesterol level? There is a school of thought that argues that it is not the cholesterol that is the problem but the amount of homocysteine in the body. Homocysteine is an amino acid derived from the normal breakdown of proteins in the body, and too much in the blood can lead to inflammation and damage to the arterial walls. Cholesterol then clings to the weakened areas and builds up narrowing the arteries and causing heart disease. A build up of homocysteine is caused by lack of vitamins B6, B12, and folic acid. How simple is that?!

8. Drugs can cause an increase in blood pressure and coronary heart disease. For example the contraceptive pill and steroids increase blood pressure. Statins, the drug that all doctors are encouraged to give to their patients to reduce cholesterol, and recently it has been suggested that they should be given as a preventative, causes a loss of CoQ10 which is very important for body energy, it is known as the ‘energy of life’ especially in the heart. You lose 75% of CoQ10 and you will die! Statins also cause Rhabdomyolysis, a breakdown of muscle including the heart muscle!

9. We are all born with faulty genetics it is the lifestyle that pulls the trigger. Blood pressure problems run in families and can lead to a stroke and weakened memory. If you have a genetic disposition for heart problems then it is vital that you take nutrients to prevent problems. Lack of nutrients leads to disease.

10. Which nutrients should you take? A good multivitamin and mineral is a start and I would recommend a liquid for better absorption. To help heal the damaged walls and prevent further damage we should also take a supplement that increases nitric oxide in the body. Nitric oxide is a molecule that our body produces to help its 50 trillion cells communicate with each other by transmitting signals throughout the entire body.
Nitric oxide has been shown to be important in the following cellular activities:

Free radicals (toxins) take out the nitric oxide, as does poor nutrition, age, and a low uptake of L-Arginine, the precursor amino acid to nitric oxide.CoQ10 is obviously important and I would also recommend a good antioxidant such as Blockbuster Allclear, which is also an anti-inflammatory.